Crane.



D. KENDALL.

CRANE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 5.1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVENTOR Patented Oct. 24, 1916.

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WITNESSES any;

DAVID KENDALL, OF ALLIANCE, OI-IIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE ALLIANCE MACHINE COMPANY, OF ALLIANCE, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

CRANE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 241, 1916.

Application filed November 5, 1915. Serial No. 59,785.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, DAVID KENDALL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Alliance, in the county of Stark and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Cranes, of which the follow ing is a full, clear, and eXact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view showing the trolley of a traveling crane constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, and Figs. 3 and 4 are detail views showing one form of clutch mechanism which I may employ.

Heretofore in traveling cranes having two hoisting drums for the cable, there have been objections to driving each drum separately by gearing to its motor on the trolley. In this case if the drums are driven separately and the gearing to one motor breaks, this drum is left free to unwind, causing an accident. If the two drums are mounted on the same shaft, it is practically impossible to get equal bearing for the driving pinions from the two motors, especially in view of the torsion on the shaft carrying the pinions.

I have discovered that by cutting in two,

' either the drum shaft or the pinion shaft and providing a clutch between the cut ends, I can avoid all these difficulties and provide for driving each drum, while preventing danger from accidents. This clutch is preferably arranged so that it does not engage during normal operation; but in case the gearing to one drum is broken, the clutch connection will become engaged, and thus give a positive connection between the drums so that the one drum will prevent the other from unwinding. The clutch connection may be used either between the two out portions of the drum shaft, or the two portions of the pinion shaft which drives the drums. In the present case I have shown the drum shaft as the one which is cut and provided with the clutch.

In the drawings which show one form of my improved apparatus, 2 and 3 represent a pair of winding drums having shafts 1 and 5 mounted in suitable bearings on the framework of the crane trolley 6. These drums are provided with toothed wheels 15 and 15 driven by pinions 14 and 14 on the pinion shaft 13. In the form illustrated I have shown this pinion shaft as driven from both ends, it having toothed wheels 12, 12 engaging pinions 11, 11, on counter-shafts 10 and 10 These counter-shafts are driven by electric motors 7 and 7 through the pinions 8, 8 and toothed wheels 9, 9

16 represent the usual brake mechanisms for the counter-shafts 10 and 10 and 17 the usual bridge motor for driving the trolley along the bridge.

In Figs. 3 and 1 I show in detail one form of clutch which I may employ for connecting the registering ends ofthe shafts 4E and 5. As shown in these figures, these ends are enlarged as shown at 4 and 5" and provided with registering cross slots, a key 18 being secured in one of these slots and having a portion projecting into the other slot, which is narrower than the width of the slot, to provide for some lost motion. I also show a ring or band 19 surrounding this clutch or flexible coupling, this acting merely to keep the shaft portions in alinement. In the form shown the apparatus is designed for a ladle crane, the usual wire cable and hook mechanism being shown in Fig. 2.

Instead of providing two drum shafts 4: and 5, I may mount the drums on a continuous single shaft and cut the pinion shaft 18 into two portions between the two drums, providing the divided ends with a clutch connection either of the form above described or of any desirable form. The pinion shaft engaging the drums may be driven either by a single motor or by two or more motors, and may have driving connections at one or more points in its length.

The advantages of my invention result from the use of the clutch mechanism between the drums which prevents back-turning of one drum in case of accident to its driving mechanism. The drums are preferably in endwise alinement, as shown, though they may be arranged in other relations, and other changes may be made without departing from my invention.

I claim:

1. A crane trolley having a pair of wind ing drums mounted on a shaft, and a pinion shaft for driving the drums, one of said shafts being cut in its intermediate portion and provided with a lost motion connection between the cut portions, substantially as described.

2. A crane trolley having a pair of winding drums, two electric motors, each having mon driving connection for the drums, subslow motion gearing for driving said'drums, stantially as described. 10 and a clutch connection between the drums In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set arranged to prevent back-turning of one in my hand.

case of accident, substantially as described. DAVID KENDALL.

3. A crane trolley having a pair of drums Witnesses:

in endwise alinement, a lost motion clutch W. C. LYON,

connection between the drums, and a com- H. M. CoRwIN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

